Siege of Two Sun
The Siege of Two Sun was a major engagement that occurred during the NCR Arizona Offensive in which the New California Republic Defense Force laid siege to the city of Two Sun (originally called Tucson), a city in southern Arizona, which was occupied by Caesar's Legion. The siege occurred on November 22nd, 2282 when NCR artillery and air strikes attacked Legion outposts surrounding the city, paving the way for an offensive into the outside regions and later, the urban areas of Two Sun, pushing back Legion troops deeper into the city's center. Legion troops, following their defeat at Phoenix, were forced into launching suicide attacks against NCR forces and would be executed if they were caught retreating. The siege ended on December 18th when the last Legion commanders were killed and the remaining soldiers surrendered to the NCR. Background On October 23rd, 2077, the city of Tucson was hit by a Chinese ICBM equipped with a roughly 500 kiloton nuclear warhead. The epicenter of the blast was Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in the southern part of the city, completely destroying the base, and causing severe damage to the southern half of the city. The downtown area of Tucson, and the nearby University of Arizona, located about a eight miles away, suffered significant, but less severe damage from the bombs. Because of this, the downtown El Presidio neighborhood, which was located near the Santa Cruz River, which, while only flowing in the rainy season, provided enough water to allow for small-scale dryland farming, particularly after the survivors constructed a series of crude dams on the river from concrete and other debris. A second major pre-war settlement was set on the remains of the University of Arizona, which became known as "A-ville" for the large "A" logo of the pre-war university. At some point after the war, the city became known as Two Sun, a corruption of the pre-war name. When Caesar's Legion arrived in at Tucson in 2253, they quickly overrun El Presidio and the other settlements in the ruins of Tucson, claiming the ruined city as part of Caesar's ever-expanding empire. Following the NCR victory over Caesar's Legion in Phoenix during the Siege of Phoenix, the Legion was forced to withdraw from the city and fled deeper into southern and eastern Arizona in hopes of regrouping and getting reinforcements from Legion territories in the Midwest and New Mexico, but only small units would arrive. With the Legion's defeat at Phoenix, the armies began to scatter and run to Eastern Arizona fearing the inevitable NCR onslaught and the defeat that the Legion was bound to suffer from. On November 21st, NCR forces arrived at Two Sun and brought with them the plans that were drawn up earlier on how to deal with the Legion which came from intel from spies and scouts inside and around the Two Sun area. Attack Plans and Early Action The NCR plan of attack, drawn up by Generals Lee Oliver, General Ignacio Ramirez, and Brotherhood Elder McNamara was similar to that used in previous battles, which consisted of using the mobility of NCR and Brotherhood mechanized forces to attack from multiple directions to flank and encircle the Legion with a northern force attacking down I-10 and Highway 77 and a southern force maneuvering through the desert floor to attack from the south and cut off routes of resupply or retreat On the early morning of November 22nd, 2282, the NCR began aerial and artillery bombardment of the Legion defenses outside the city of Two Sun to weaken their defenses and help pave a way for NCR mechanized infantry and ground forces to be sent in and suffer fewer casualties. The artillery and air strikes managed to hit the Legion defenses hard and pinned those stationed in trenches. At 1000 hours on November 22nd, NCR and Brotherhood of Steel airborne forces approached the summits of Mount Lemmon, Mount Kimball, and Wasson Peak via Vertibird and helicopter after it had been confirmed that what anti-air defenses the Legion had were suppressed. The landing forces, led by Brotherhood power armor units quickly cleared the Legion defenders on the mountain tops, depriving them of valuable observation post and artillery positions. With the summits in the mountains captured, the two main attack forces advanced. By 1100 hours, both the northern and southern forces had encountered forward Legion defense, the northern force traveling along I-10 and Hwy 77 making contact near the pre-war suburbs of Catalina, Oro Valley and Casas Adobes, and the southern forces, flanking to the south of Wasson Peak, near Tucson Estates. At the same time, Brotherhood and NCR airborne forces had advanced along mountains east of Wasson Peak and captured Gates Pass, which held a pre-war road. Catalina was the first suburb to fall, as it was isolated from the rest of the Tucson metro area by the Santa Catalina Mountains, and hence the NCR mechanized forces could surround it and trap the Legion between their forces an the mountains. Catalina fell by 1400 hours on the 22nd. The suburbs directly connected with the Tucson Metropolitan area would prove more difficult to clear, with the NCR forces coming up against entrenched Legion infantry armed with heavy weapons such as machine guns and rocket launchers, as well as whatever artillery guns and tanks they could muster, all placed in hidden ambush positions. Much as it was in the siege of Phoenix, the engagements in the suburbs became a matter of locating the pre-war houses that held Legion strongpoints and demolishing them with tank guns or handheld rocket launchers, or else rooting the Legion out with flamethrowers and grenades. By 1600 hours, the northern force were aided by the two XM58 Self-Propelled Laser Weapons the NCR had acquired which had made their way to the top of Gates Pass, into a position where they could fire down on Legion positions and vehicles guarding I-10 running through Casas Adobes and Flowing Wells. In spite of the XM58s, as well as the air and artillery support, it would take four days, until November 26th, before the northwest suburbs of Tucson were completely cleared of Legion troops, at the expense of 47 NCR casualties and four vehicles lost, and over 200 Legion KIA. To the south, the NCR offensive advanced more quickly, with NCR Rangers and First Recon taking positions in the mountains above the Ajo Highway east of Tucson Heights on November 23rd, and NCR armor pushing through the pass on the highway later that day. NCR armored and mechanized forces also pushed south of the Drexel Heights area of East Tucson and reaching Interstate 19 and cutting off Legion reinforcements from Nogales. Legion forces, divided between defending against the northern and southern attacks were unable to push through the road block or hold onto the suburb of Drexel Heights, which fell late on November 24th. Urban Combat By November 27th, NCR and allied forces held the northwestern and southwesternmost suburbs of Tucson. To the north, they held everything west of Highway 77 and north of the Hwy 77 - I-10 junction. To the south, they held everything west of I-19 and south of the I-10 - I-19 junction. The last remaining Legion position west of I-10 was located on Sentinel Peak, a small mountain known for the large stone "A" placed on the mountain by the pre-war University of Arizona, and the nearby summit of Tumamoc Hill. In spite of heavy artillery and air bombardment, especially after the NCR took the higher mountains to the west, the Legion defenders stubbornly continued to hold the summit. On the morning of November 27th, NCR forces launched a pincer attack on the Legion troops holding Sentinel Peak from the north and south, the summit immediately being placed under heavy fire from artillery, tanks, and Vertibird gunships. To the south, they encountered heavy resistance near the old Pima County Jail to the south, which the Legion had converted into a fortress. By 1100 hours, the building had been practically demolished by heavy weapons fire, and the Legion forces rooted out of the ruins. At the same time, NCR infantry and Brotherhood power armor units began their advance up Tumamoc Hill, supported by armor and Vertibirds. The NCR and Brotherhood flags were planted on the hilltop at 1120 hours, and ten minutes later, NCR infantry took the summit of Sentinel Peak. After the capture of Sentinel Peak and Tumamoc Hill, the NCR and Brotherhood had effectively eliminated any Legion resistance west of I-4O, and began their push east into Downtown Tucson, with the primary targets being the pre-war courthouse used by the Legion as a provincial capital building since they first invaded. By 1400 hours, NCR forces had pushed across the Legion defensive lines I-10 and into the El Presidio neighborhood of downtown. Here, in the narrow streets, the NCR would meet heavy resistance from Legion defenders, who, having been ordered to defend to the death, fiercely held even against far superior forces. Hidden within the maze of residential developments and fortified commercial and government buildings, the Legion had ample opportunity to stage ambushes in the streets, using handheld rocket launchers and what remaining armor and artillery guns hidden in concealed positions. Legion troops would also be observed launching suicide bombing attacks using anti-tank rocket warheads or mini-nukes, intending to the slam the detonator against the hull of an NCR armored vehicle. These suicide attacks accounted for nearly half of the NCR vehicles destroyed in the siege. By the end of November 27th, the NCR advance in the city center has slowed to a crawl, having only advanced a few hundred meters to the east, to Granada Avenue, the wide street lined ruined structures on both sides having turned into the front line of the battle for the next 24 hours, until NCR tanks and artillery finally managed to knock out most of the Legion positions on the east side of the road, allowing infantry, including Brotherhood power armor units, to cross. It would take another several hours, however, until the ruins on the east side of the road were secure enough to allow the rubble-strewn streets to be cleared sufficiently to allow NCR tanks to cross. This would be a pattern that would be repeated multiple times in the fight to take the downtown, with the rubble from buildings damaged in the Great War or by NCR artillery and air strikes acting as a road block for armored forces. In at least one instance, specifically a pre-war pedestrian overpass between to structures that had once been part of the Tucson municipal government complex, the Legion intentionally demolished the structure to provide a blockage for NCR armor. On the night of the 27th-28th, Legion force counterattacked in human wave attacks, which were repulsed, however, they still inflicted heavy casualties as, while NCR tanks and special forces had night vision equipment, such devices were rare and unavailable to the average NCR infantryman. While they were spread thin, the night vision equipment the NCR and allied troops did have proved valuable in pushing back the Legion counterattack. On the 28th, NCR forces, led by tanks and power armor units, advanced into the pre-war Tucson municipal complex, a group of pre-war buildings that had been fortified by the Legion. Many of the structures had been reduced to little more than ruins and heaps of rubble, which provided the Legion with positions to ambush the NCR and allied troops from, as well as blockages which reduced NCR tank mobility to the point they were useful only as short-range artillery. Even after the tower office blocks that made up the municipal complex were practically completely demolished, the Legion doggedly held on to the structure, forcing the NCR and allied forces to root them out in close combat with weapons such as grenades and flamethrower. While NCR and Brotherhood power armor units proved valuable in providing fire support, the municipal offices were not taken until around 1400 hours on October 28th. After seizing the office complex, NCR troops, supported by power armor, Vertibirds and helicopters, and a few tanks that managed to find a way around the numerous rubble piles, assaulted the ruined remains of the pre-war Courthouse, which had, by this point, had much of the roof of the rotunda, including the entire dome collapsed by artillery fire, and the entire northern wing. The courthouse was cleared only by 1800 hours on November 28th. While the capture of the building the Legion used as their provincial capital was a major victory, Marius escaped at some point during the battle, retreating to the remains of the University of Arizona. The NCR and allied troops would be faced with three more days fighting before they cleared the city center, and two more after taht On the night of the 28th and 29th, the NCR and allied forces successfully drove back another Legion counterattack, preventing them from reclaiming the hard-won municipal building and courthouse. The next day, the NCR advance continued, crossing Church Avenue and seizing the ruins of several pre-war skyscrapers after another day of heavy fighting, which would continue for the next two days, until November 31st, when they captured the Congress Hotel and the railway station, having definitively pushed the Legion across the railway tracks. By this point, the Legion had lost so many troops in their counterattacks that they could no longer effectively counterattack, instead opting to adopt a defensive line along the pre-war rail line. To the south of the downtown area, NCR force advanced more quickly. On Novemeber 29th, the NCR took the remains of the Tucson International Airport, and began pushing into the area known as the "Dead Zone", the area that had been most heavily impacted by the nuclear attack on Davis-Monahan Air Force Base in 2077. While the area was ruined by any usefulness, the radiation from the bombs had dissipated to safe levels over a century ago, allowing the NCR to advance through area. While the advance was slowed by Legion attacks and by the need to circumvent or clear piles of 200-year old rubble to allow passage, by November 30th, 2282, the NCR southern assault has capture the southern suburb of Littletown and cut off the southwest-running stretch of I-10, cutting off Legion's last major connection to their holdings to the southwest. The The "Dead Zone" and the Bomb After clearing Littletown on November 31st, the NCR southern assault force continued their assault into the "Dead Zone", the area around Davis-Monthan Air Force Base that was most heavily damaged to by the nuclear attack in 2077. While the radiation from the bombs had long since dissipated to the point that it was safe to enter, the area remained an abandoned area with practically no intact structure, only piles of rubble and the twisted remains of steel structure frames. While Legion presence and fighting was lighter than in the battle for the downtown, this area was the site of one of the most infamous incidents of the battle. As General Ignacio Ramirez's forces advanced on the ruins of the pre-war Air Force base, they were met by unexpectedly heavy Legion resistance. The Legion forces in the southern portion of the city had allocated much of their few remaining tanks and artillery guns to the area, made frequent use of surprise suicide attacks, snipers, and even mines and IEDs, tactics that the Legion were typically opposed to, given their favoring a "stand-up fight" at close ranges. NCR and allied leaders were surprised by the heavy defense of what was considered a worthless ruin. It would not be until at about 1800 hours on November 31st that the reasons behind this would known. After the fall of the city center, former Legate and Fourth Caesar of the Legion, Marius of Phoenix had ordered the Legion to remove a surviving pre-war nuclear warhead from a munitions bunker under the air base and attempt to re-arm and detonate the device as the NCR approached. This, Marius hoped, would destroy the advancing NCR and Allied to forces and cause enough casualties to hald the offensive. The Legionaries surrounding the bunker, who had been falsely told that Marius was within (he had, in fact, retreated to to the east) were ordered to defend the area to the death, which they did for most of the day, being wiped out nearly to the man. When NCR armor broke through the main defensive line, the Legion frumentarii, who had been unsuccessfully attempting to detonate the device for the last few days, triggered an explosive device in a desperate attempt to detonate the bomb. The attempt failed initiate a nuclear detonation, however, the blast did break the bomb's casing and throw radioactive material over a distance of several hundred meters. All of the Legion frumentarii that survived the explosion and 14 NCR received fatal doses of radiation beyond anything that could be treated with anti-radiation medicine such as RadAway, and died with hours, though the remaining NCR personnel were successfully treated, though there remain some allegations that a number of soldiers who died of cancer years or decades later were as a result of radiation exposure. It is generally believed by the NCR and Brotherhood that, given their lack of technical expertise, that it is unlikely that the Legion could have re-armed the warhead. Thankfully, only a small portion of the bomb's radioactive material was released in the explosion, limiting the effects of the Legion's impromptu "dirty bomb" to several hundred meters. The remains of the bomb were later dismantled and disposed of by NCR and Brotherhood of Steel technicians equipped with radiation suits and/or lead-lined power armor. The region around the explosion remains irradiated, but is not frequently traveled as it was already near the epicenter of a Great War-era nuclear blast and thus completely devastated. With Marius' final attempt to swing the war in his favor having failed, he is believed to have fled the city, having retreated to the west. Meanwhile, the NCR and allied forces continued their offensive, with the northern assault force attacking the remains of the University of Arizona and the southern attack force continuing east until reaching the mountains, cutting of the Legion's escape. Taking "A-ville" After the capture of what remained of the settlement of El Presidio, the largest settlement in the Tucson area under Legion control was "A-ville", a settlement located in the ruins of the pre-war University of Arizona campus, named for the large letter "A" logo of the pre-war university. Prior to the NCR arrival in the city, it had been home to over 10,000 civilians, and was known as the "Second Sun", referring to the two major settlements, as well as the pre-war name. While most of the free civilian population had fled the Tucson area as the NCR advanced, the Legion held about 1500 civilians, mostly slaves, but also some civilians that were late in fleeing captive in "A-ville", hoping to use them as hostages to discourage NCR bombing of the area. This was only partially successful. While the NCR did not carpet bomb the area, they did launch more targetted air and artillery strikes from November 30th to December 2nd which nonetheless caused considerable collateral damage. By this point, there were only about 800 Legionaries remaining in Tucson, most of them in "A-ville". As NCR forces drew close, the slaves and civilian hostages, held in the pre-war football stadium by about 200 Legionaries, grew increasingly desperate, trapped between the Legion and encroaching NCR army. Having already suffered dozens of dead from an artillery hit, and having suffered dozens of other near-misses, the hostages hatched a desperate plan to escape the stadium. Starting on November 30th, a group of hostages with knowledge of the explosives from their experiences prior to capture created a number of improvised EMP devices intended to knock out the electronic slave collars, before forcing their way through the entrances and escape, with the intent to flee to the abandoned residential area and surrender to the NCR. On the night of December 2nd, as the NCR advanced on the city and artillery fire became more frequent, the rebels detonated the EMP devices. While many of the slave collars were disabled, over 150 successfully detonated when the Legion triggered them as the rebels stormed the gates. Hundreds more rebels were slaughtered by Legionaries with machine guns mounted in the upper stands of the stadium. Many of the hostages were not aware of the rebellion, and were cut down before they could flee. Nonetheless, over 800 rebels stormed the south gate of the stadium. While the rebels were armed only with handmade knives, blunt instruments, and a few Molotov cocktails, "pipe guns", and handmade explosives, they vastly outnumbered the Legion forces and overwhelmed them in spite of the heavy fire pouring down on them from the machine guns in the stands, and forced their way into the interior of the stadium, beyond the range of the machine guns. Upon entering the interior, the rebels quickly wiped out the Legion guards, taking their weapons before they exited the stadium. While most of the rebel hostages escaped, about 100 or so, mostly NCR prisoners and former tribals who had lost much of their people to the Legion stayed behind to do as much damage to the Legion forces based in the stadium. Armed of weapons stolen Legion weaponry, the remaining rebels moved through the interior of the stadium, attacking the machine gun nests in the stands from behind and killing over 100 Legionaries in the chaos, including a centurion and several decanii, effectively wiping out much of the leadership of the Legion forces in the University area. Of the rebels that escaped, about 700-800 spread out into the city in small groups, most of them taking cover in the pre-war residential areas to the east of the university, which were only light populated with Legion troops and mostly abandoned, where they would hide until they could surrender to advancing NCR troops later in the week. Of the 1500 hostages in the stadium, about half of them survived the escape. The slave uprising in the stadium essentially destroyed the Legion positions from within, eliminating much of the Legion leadership, allowing the NCR to easily advance through Legion lines on December 2nd and take the stadium. The only remaining pocket of resistance in "A-ville" consisted of the baseball stadium and a group of former university office buildings on the north side of the central quad, which were surrounded by NCR forces and cleared or demolished by the end of the December 3rd. Because of the slave uprising, fighting in "A-ville" was over more quickly and much lighter than in the El Presidio and downtown areas. For this reason, while the postwar community of El Presidio was abandoned after sustaining heavy damage in the battle, "A-ville" would eventually be repopulated, as on the buildings in the northeast corner of the former university were heavily damaged in the battle. Last Holdouts After the fall of "A-ville" and the failure to detonate the pre-war bomb the Legion recovered at Davis Monthan Air Force Base, the remaining Legion forces were trapped between the NCR and Allied forces to the west and south, and the Santa Catalina Mountains to the north and east. By this point, the Legion armies had been divided into small groups ranging from less than ten at the smallest to about 200 at the largest, scattered among the abandoned pre-war residential and commercial areas of the city. The reaction of these troops to encountering NCR forces varied greatly- some surrendered immediately, while others offered fierce resistance, fighting to the last man. In may case, however, the groups of holdouts that fought back would quickly surrender as soon as the commanding officer was killed, as he was the only thing holding the unit together. During this period, which lasted roughly from December 4th-11th, much of the NCR and allied effort was tied up not actually fighting the Legion holdouts, but rather finding them in the maze of abandoned houses, stores, schools, basements, sewers, storm drains, and other structures that made up the remains of the pre-war Tucson. By December 11th, the dense residential areas west of Houghton Road were cleared, allowing the NCR advance in the less densely spaced pre-war houses of the Tanque Verde neighborhood. Some of the last Legion resistance on the valley floor took place on December 13th at the Tanque Verde Ranch, an abandoned pre-war guest ranch on the eastern edge of the mountains. A force of about 50 Legionaries fought against a company of NCR infantry, supported by a tank platoon and a Brotherhood power armor section. The firefight lasted for about 10 minutes, until the structures on the ranch were demolished by tank shells and mini-nukes. Twenty-nine Legionaries were killed in the engagement, as were seven NCR troops and one Brotherhood Paladin. After the engagement at Tanque Verde Ranch, Legion forces, totaling around 100 remained only in the Santa Catalina Mountains, mainly in the lower slopes, as the highest peaks, including the over 9000-foot Mount Lemmon had snow on them in December, and many Legionaries did not have proper winter clothing. These remnants were pursued by NCR Rangers and First Recon into mountains, where many of them surrendered as supplied ran low and their commanders were killed. The last firefight in the Tucson area occurred on the December 18th, when a squad of NCR First Recon soldiers engaged in a firefight with a group of Legionaries near Chiva Falls, in the mountains east of Tanque Verde. The fight lasted for less then three minutes before the Legion surrendered, having lost four of their soldiers, including a decanus, and having almost run out of ammunition. On December 22nd, the city of Two Sun was officially declared cleared by NCR command. Aftermath As with many other battles in the NCR Arizona Offensive, the Siege of Two Sun devastated many of the populated areas of the pre-war city, with the settlement of Presidio, in the former downtown, being practically annihilated. Many of the civilians who escaped El Presidio would go on to found the settlement of Tanque Verde in the northwestern part of the Greater Tucson area. The settlement of "A-Ville", in the former University of Arizona was less damaged, and there former citizens returned home. In 2284, Tucson and the surrounding area would be organized into the NCR Protectorate Republic of Arizona, as one of the four original states, along with Phoenix, Kaibab (Flagstaff north to the Grand Canyon), and Redrock (area west of the Union of the Ute and Navajo Nations border). The victory at Two Sun would prove to be the beginning of the end for the Legion in Arizona, with, the only remaining Legion forces remaining in the southeastern part of the state, most notably in the Mogollon Rim, as well as in the cities of Nogales and Bisbee, both surrounded by mountains. After their victory at Two Sun, they NCR army would launch attacks to take the towns of Green Valley and Benson, cutting off the main roads into Nogales and Bisbee from the north, while the NCR Navy and Marines would attack Puerto Penasco, in what was once Mexico, the Legion's only seaport. By January 5th, 2283, Benson, Green Valley, and Puerto Penasco has all fallen, cutting off Nogales and Bisbee from resupply. Nogales would be the first target, with the Siege of Nogales taking starting on January 11th, 2283. Category:Battles Category:Events